McCaskill, Hawley draw early battle lines in key Senate race
And they're off!
Not that Claire McCaskill and Josh Hawley weren't facing off against each other already, but last night's results made the match up official.
It also gave us a good sense of the early battle lines in this race, which promises to be one of the most hotly contested and closely watched of this midterm cycle.
A few takeaways from the candidates this week:
Hawley's gameplan is to keep hitting McCaskill
Much of Hawley's pitch during his primary night event Tuesday night was to paint Senator McCaskill as elitist, entrenched in DC, out of step with her conservative constituents, and "reflexively" in line with Democratic leadership.
When NBC News asked if he's "reflexively" in line with President Trump, who endorsed his campaign and has fundraised for him, Hawley replied that he will put his constituents first.
Throughout his conversation with reporters, Hawley flipped every question to a referendum on McCaskill for siding with Democrats instead of Trump and Missouri.
This is a state Trump won by more than 18 points, so Hawley is relying on that partisan message to keep the Trump coalition together. But Hawley may have a tough needle to thread while dealing with the administrations tariffs, which could be problematic to the state's agricultural sector.
Democrats happy with primary turnout
A flood of Democratic primary voters went to the polls on Tuesday in what Democrats believe could be a good sign about the party's enthusiasm.
More than 600,000 Democratic primary voters cast their ballots this year, compared to 320,000 in the 2016 Missouri Senate primary and 289,000 in the 2012 Missouri Senate primary.
Republicans also came out in force, but basically matched their 2016 turnout. So the big trend upward in Democratic turnout is notable here.
On the phone this morning with reporters, McCaskill saw that as a sign of good things to come: "I feel really good about enthusiasm on the ground" and that Missourians paying "really close attention...will ultimately benefit our side of the equation."
The Kavanaugh Supreme Court vote will resonate here
The upcoming Supreme Court vote puts Democrats from Trump country in a tough spot, something McCaskill admitted when she told reporters it's not a "political winner" of an issue for her.
McCaskill wants to make this race about healthcare (and opioids and drug pricing), but that also plays right into the Supreme Court debate that Hawley is itching to have.
Voters at Hawley's campaign headquarters on primary night all said that the Court is a big issue, and while that's from a pretty partisan sample, McCaskill won't be able to win Missouri with just Democratic support.